On eunoia.world you can find a list of words that don't translate to other languages, such as the German word "Backpfeifengesicht", which means "a face in need of a slap." Just refresh the web page to see a new set of words.  — Read the rest

Behold, the glory of the compound noun: Fernweh ("the feeling of wanting to be elsewhere, anywhere but where you are at this moment"); Weltschmerz ("the state of weariness one feels at the state of the world"); Fuchsteufelswild ("a state of unfiltered, primal rage"); and of course, the indispensable Backpfeifengesicht.

An open Reddit thread entitled "What are your favorite culturally untranslateable phrases?" rapidly degenerated into a collection of rollicking, profane, grotesque insults, each more alarming and delightful than the last. Read the whole thing, of course, but here are some of the less profane examples:

* The Dutch phrase for giving too much attention to insignificant details is "ant fucking".

Adam Jacot de Boinod wrote a book called The Meaning Of Tingo, "a collection of words and phrases from around the world."

Here are some of the words in the book (from a BBC article)
katahara itai: the action of laughing so much that one side of your abdomen hurts. — Read the rest